What is personal service of court documents? If you are a Plaintiff who had just filed a Writ of Summons in the National Court, what is the method that you must employ to serve the court document on the defendant. In Papua New Guinea, for any document that is filed in a court proceedings, it must be served on the other party. These documents may be served personally on the other parties. However, for some documents you do not need to serve it personally on the other party. There are some documents, however, that the National Court Rules 1983 specifically sets out that these documents must be served personally on the other parties. Some examples of these are:
- Originating process such as writ of summons and originating summons.
- Notice of motion or summons, statement of charge and affidavit in relation to contempt proceedings.
How to effect personal service on an individual?
If you filed a writ of summons against an individual, you must serve it on the Defendant personally. That means that you must hand over the document to the defendant and he himself must receive it. However, if he refused to accept the writ, you must leave a copy down in his presence. Thereafter, you must tell him the nature of the document.
In Pansat Communications Pty Ltd v Mai [1995] PNGLR 438 (Sawong AJ) the plaintiff served on the defendant the writ of summons. The process served handed the writ of summons to the defendant who took it and read it. Thereafter, he handed the writ of summons back to the process server. The Court found that her was personally served the writ of summons. The fact that he handed it back to the process server is irrelevant. Furthermore, the Court found that handing back the writ of summons does not amount to declining service.
How to effect personal service on a corporation?
The National Court Rules 1983 provides under Order 6 rule 3 (2) that if you filed a writ of summons against a corporation, you must serve it on the corporation personally. You can do that through serving it personally on the mayor, chairman or president of the corporation or on the town clerk, clerk, secretary, treasurer, or other similar officers of the corporation. That means that you must hand over the document to the defendant and he himself must receive it on behalf of the corporation. However, if he refused to accept the writ, you must leave a copy down in his presence and tell him the nature of the document.
The National Court Rules 1983, however, provides under Order 6 rule 2 (1) that all originating process must be served personally on each defendant unless there is a legislation that states that it should not be served personally or it provides other methods for service. A good example of this is Section 431 of the Companies Act 1997 which provides that you can serve any court document in a proceeding, such as a writ, summons, notice, or order, against an incorporation in the following ways:
- by delivery to a person named as a director or the secretary of the company on the register.
- by delivery to an employee of the company at the company’s head office or principal place of business.
- by leaving it at the company’s registered office or address for service.
- by posting it to the company’s registered office, or address for service or postal address.
- by serving it in accordance with any directions as to service given by the court having jurisdiction in the proceedings.
- in accordance with an agreement made with the company.
- by serving it at an address for service given in accordance with the rules of the Court having jurisdiction in the proceedings or by such means as 7a solicitor has, in accordance with those rules, stated that the solicitor will accept service.
These seven methods set out about are the only method by which you can serve a court document on a corporation in Papua New Guinea. In Kitika v Mitina [2021] PGNC 479; N9340 (Eliakim AJ) found service on an unauthorized officer of the corporation at a branch that is neither the registered office nor the principal place of business is not service.
In Wong v Haus Bilas Corp Pty Ltd [1988-89] PNGLR 42 (Andrew AJ) the Court set aside a default judgement because it discovered that it made this judgement upon the mistaken belief that service was effected properly on the defendant who is a incorporation. The plaintiff served the writ on the accountant of the defendant at an office that is not the registered office of the defendant. Hence, it is not sufficient service on the accountant on the defendant.
Service on defendants named in a group
How do you effect serve on defendants who are named in the proceedings as a group? Do you serve the document to only one of the defendants in the group? The short answer to this in no, you serve is on each of the named defendants. You must serve it personally on each one. In Tima v Korohan [2006] PGNC 21; N3045, the plaintiffs named four (4) defendants in a group. He then served one copy of the writ of summons on only one of the defendants. The Court held that personal service was not effected on the other three (3) defendants. The service of one defendant named in a group is not sufficient to say that it is personal service on all defendants named in a group. Each must be service personally.
In conclusion, personal service must be effected on each defendant personally as per Order 6 rule 2 and 3 of the Rules and if there are legislations that makes provision for service then service must be in accordance with those legislations for each specific matter.
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